Editorial: President is right that police deserve better than ‘us vs. them’ talk

Midland Reporter-Telegram

Published 5:39 am, Thursday, October 29, 2015

Photo: Jose Luis Magana

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President Barack Obama, accompanied by Vice Commander, of the 89th Airlift Wing Colonel Christopher M. Thompson, walks towards Air Force One before is departure from Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015. Obama is traveling to Chicago to speak at the International Association of Chief of Police conference and attend democratic fundraisers. ( AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) less

President Barack Obama, accompanied by Vice Commander, of the 89th Airlift Wing Colonel Christopher M. Thompson, walks towards Air Force One before is departure from Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Tuesday, Oct. ... more

Photo: Jose Luis Magana

Editorial: President is right that police deserve better than ‘us vs. them’ talk

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On Tuesday, President Obama told the International Association of Chief of Police that law enforcement has been “scapegoated for the broader failures of our society and criminal justice system.”

The president, according to the Associated Press, came to the defense of police officers who have come under scrutiny like never before. He blamed the news media’s tendency “to focus on the sensational” for helping to drive a wedge between police officers and a public they take an oath to protect and serve. He called for rebuilding the trust that once existed.

“I know that you do your jobs with distinction no matter the challenges you face. That’s part of wearing a badge,” the president said. “I reject any narrative that seeks to divide police and the communities that they serve — I reject the story line that says, when it comes to public safety, there’s an ‘us’ and ‘them,’” Obama said. He said it’s a “narrative that too often gets served up to us by news stations seeking ratings, or tweets seeking retweets, or political candidates seeking some attention.”

We were happy to see the president come out on the right side of this issue. We were beginning to wonder if he and his administration had become numb to the poisonous rhetoric being spread in our society.

In our view, good law enforcement officials are needed more than ever. Even this week, a most disturbing video shows a school officer in South Carolina resorting to unbelievable tactics to remove a student from a classroom. The fact is, in the age of iPhones and YouTube the focus on law enforcement has never been greater. There are groups looking to pounce on every perceived mistake police officers make. We don’t envy those who wear a badge, but we do admire them and applaud their willingness to protect residents of their cities.

Communities across the nation need law enforcement to be its best. Reports of gun violence in major metropolitan areas show this is not the time for officers to be on the sidelines. They can’t hesitate to do their job even one little bit. When they are apprehensive, people die. When they second-guess, our communities aren’t as safe.

We support the local law enforcement leaders such as Sheriff Gary Painter and Police Chief Price Robinson. We expect they will continue to promote a culture where their men and women are engaged in protecting our community. We believe they will call for accountability when needed and not shy away from measures such as body cameras that ultimately confirm the actions of law enforcement doing its job correctly. We thank all local law enforcement agencies because they are doing a job that impacts the rest of us so much. And they are doing it with little fanfare and without the collective praise they deserve.

On Tuesday, President Obama sent a message to the law enforcement community that what they are doing matters. We hope our community and people around the country hear that message and echo that support.